


Baby Steps

by Rocket_Duckling



Category: Destiny (Video Games)
Genre: But also sweet stuff, I'll try to keep the story simple, and whatever happens, in later chapters there's gonna be some sad stuff, it's gonna be okay, just dynamics between freshly rezzed kinderguardian and her ghost
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-09
Updated: 2019-06-09
Packaged: 2020-04-23 16:41:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,023
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19154956
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rocket_Duckling/pseuds/Rocket_Duckling
Summary: A journey of Ghost and its Guardian to the Last City. How hard could it be?





	1. Names

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is a follow up story to my "Guardian and Ghost" fic. It isn't necessary to read it to understand this story, but you could treat it as a prequel to this one.

The Ghost twirled its shell in eagerness. It had been doing that a lot recently. But how could it not? It finally found its Guardian. It couldn’t wait to bring her back to the City so they could start having many adventures the other Ghosts had with their charges. It turned to glance at her, only to notice she wasn’t beside him.

“Guardian?” it called with a speck of worry in its tone. Had it already lost her? She was following it just moments ago!

 “Guardian?!” it hollered in panic. It looked around. Nothing but trees and boulders and yellow flo-

“Guardian!” it exclaimed, swiftly flying towards her. _Why isn’t she responding? Are her audio receptors damaged? Why didn’t she said something if she got hurt?_

“Guardian?” it nudged her softly against her helm. She whirled her head towards it. The movement made the little yellow flowers on her body start swaying.

“Why did you stop? Have you hurt yourself?” The Ghost questioned as it scanned her from her head to her toes.

She shook her head and instead pointed before her. “What is that?”

It looked at what she was pointing at. There, in between the green foliage, was hidden a small silverish snake. It flickered its tongue out, not moving. The Guardian reached out to touch it.

“Don’t,” her Ghost advised, “That’s a poisonous snake, common adder to be exact. It will bite you if you get too close. Though, it would probably break its fangs on your hand.”

“Why?” she asked, her hands on her knees now.

“Its teeth are made to bite through flesh not metal.”

She studied her hands for a moment.

“I mean, why would it want to bite me?”

“That’s what animals do if they feel threatened or if they’re scared. They’re either attack in self-defence or try to run away.”

She made a small “oh” sound. The Ghost nudged her again.

“C’mon, we have a long way ahead of us.”

“Okay!” She cheerfully replied as she jumped back on her feet. The Ghost chuckled at her demeanour.

***

Many Ghosts compared their newly resurrected charges to children, babies even. It never understood why they would say such things about adults. But now, watching its freshly revived Guardian, the Ghost had to agree with them. She was a baby. It wasn't saying she wobbled on her legs like a toddler _(though she did fall a few times already)_ or tried to put anything she found into her mouth. Not that it had to worry she would poison herself; Exos didn't need to eat.

“Ghost and what is this plant?”

It was the endless string of questions about anything she saw. It wasn’t saying it was unhappy or annoyed to answer her. It was the constant stopping. The Ghost wanted to get back to the City, make its Guardian an official one, and get a new, clean, unbroken shell. Also its Guardian needed a serious make over. Due to its... _situation_ it couldn’t make her clothes out of the raw materials how other Ghosts could. That left her vulnerable; another reason why they needed to get to the City ASAP.

“Ghost?” she asked, tilting her head.

“Oh, that one's named black elder. It's pretty common shrub in this area. In a month or two it will bloom in tiny white flowers.”

“Like these?” She pointed at the buttercups on her body.

“Even tinier. Those make tiny bouquets and they smell really nice.”

The woman seemed to frown. At least the Ghost thought so. It was hard to describe emotions of Exos.

“If the flowers are white, why is it called black elder?”

“Its berries are dark purple, almost black in colour. Some call it elderberry.”

“It has different names?” she asked, confused.

“Of course,” it confirmed. It nudged against her shoulder silently telling her to move. When she obeyed it continued: “It depends on the language. For instance, in old German it was called die Holunder or internationally in Latin Sam-"

“Sambucus nigra,” she interrupted. The Ghost turned to look at her. She seemed to be surprised. Its shell swayed side to side as it was thinking.

"Let me try something. Do you remember the snake? The adder?" She slowly nodded. It continued, carefully studying her reaction. “It’s also called as common European viper with Latin name Vipera...” It stopped and watched her. When she didn’t answer, it added “...berus,” with a huff.

“What about those buttercups? They’re also known as crowfoot. These ones look like the meadow buttercups.”

She plucked one of them off of her. With no roots to hold it, some of the soil fell from her body. She carefully spun the plant in between her fingers as she examined it.

“It’s Rannunculus repens,” she said. The Ghost was about to correct her when she added: “Meadow buttercup wouldn’t be creeping like this one does.” She pointed at the stalk. The Ghost floated closer and scanned it. As it compared the plant to the ones in its database. It looked at the woman in interest.

“Let’s try a few more.”

 

The Ghost asked her about other plants; some of them they encountered, but most of them she should had been hearing about the first time. It noticed she only knew the names in Latin. It also noticed the plants she recognized where used in folk remedies.

"Hmm. It seems you were interested in medical plants before."

"Well, I don't remember that," she muttered, poking at the flowers on her arm.

"Don't worry about that. Who you once were isn't important now. It's who you are now and who you will become that matters," her companion assured her.

The Exo woman stopped walking. With crossed arms she demanded: "Well, who am I then?"

Her Ghost looked at her. It hoped an existential crisis wouldn’t be on their to-do list for few weeks. Well, might as well get it over with.

"You are the future protector of mankind."

"But who am I? What is my name?"

"Your name..." It paused. She looked so lost and unsure, completely different to her curious self. "It can be whatever you want it to be."

"Do people normally name themselves?"

"Guardians do. Most don't remember their names. Maybe expect Exos. But some choose other name anyways."

"Do you have a name or are you named Ghost?"

"Ghost isn't really a name; it's more of a title. Like when I call you a Guardian. But you can call me Ghost or anything else you want."

She seemed unhappy with its answer.

"And how do others that are not Ghosts or Guardians get their name?"

"Usually their parents name them when they are born."

She appeared to think about something. The Ghost was getting jittery; the nightfall was nearing, they needed to find a decent shelter to spend the night. It wasn’t even counting at the possible threats lurking in the woods.

"Then...” her voice pulled it out of its own thoughts, “we should pick names for each other. It doesn't have to be now."

The Ghost wasn’t trying to hide its enthusiasm about that idea.


	2. Classes

The Exo woman leaned against the cave wall and looked outside. It started to rain an hour or so back, the falling water drumming on the leaves. She watched as the leaves trembled when a new droplet landed on them. She reached out with her hand, the rain falling against it as well now. It was soothing.

“What are you thinking about?”

She glanced at her Ghost. She went to touch it but it flinched away.

“Water!” it squeaked. She quickly pulled her hand away, extending her dry one. The Ghost floated onto her palm, slightly snuggling against it.

“Sorry, I forgot about the crack.”

“It’s fine. I’m glad I don’t have to be outside to endure it.”

“But the rain is so calming! It feels nice.”

The Ghost disagreed. “It is wet and cold and unforgiving.”

The woman stared at it. The Ghost got a feeling she was about to do something childish.

“It is not. I can prove it,” she declared as she stood up. It quickly left her hand when she stopped by the entrance. It was sure she was grinning.

With a laugh she jumped outside. In mere seconds she was drenched. The Ghost twitched its frame in amusement. She jumped into puddles, splashing water and mud around. She stretched her arms and spun and spun. A few of the flowers detached from her in the process. Her laugh cut merrily through the sounds of falling water. It hadn’t thought it could love its Guardian more.

“Changed your mind yet?” she called from the rain.

“Maybe, but you won’t get me out there.”

The Ghost settled on a perfectly dry rock as it watched her dance in the rain. Many of the buttercup flowers lay at her feet. Only the strongly rooted ones stayed on her frame, happily bouncing with her movement. It had asked why she didn’t just remove them. She shrugged and told it they were pretty. It didn’t argue with her and let her keep them. They weren’t hurting her and at least she wasn’t completely naked.

Finally she returned into the cavern. The most of flowers that survived the rain’s assault were attached to her head, shoulders and waist. Just some of them remained on the rest of her body. Her eyes shone brightly like the flowers’ petals, grinning like only Exos could.

“Did you have fun?”

She eagerly nodded, splattering muddy droplets everywhere. The Ghost recoiled but a couple of them hit its shell.

“Sorry, sorry, sorry!” she apologized and tried to wipe them away. But her wet fingers only smeared the dirt.

“It’s fine!” The Ghost cried out when it escaped her hold. It hovered above her, out of her reach. The Guardian slouched into herself, looking utterly miserable. It sighed.

“I know you were trying to help,” it told her, its tone calm, “It’s just a smudge, no need to beat yourself over it. And,” it bumped her head and jokingly added “it isn’t like my shell is perfectly clean.”

She snorted at that.

“It’s getting late; we should get some rest for the night.”

She agreed. She lay onto the ground, finding the most comfortable spot one could find in a rocky cavern. The Ghost rested near her head.

“Good night, Ghost.”

“Good night. Guardian.”

***

“How long until we find this city?”

“On foot? It would take us months to get there. I’m hoping we cross paths with another Guardian.”

She stopped skipping to focus on him. “Why?”

“To give us a lift, of course. Guardians get a ship while on patrols. And if you have enough glimmer you can buy one for yourself. But I’d recommend getting a Sparrow first.”

“Glimmer? And why would you want a ship, there’s no big lakes here. And buying a bird?”

The Ghost laughed.

“Sorry,” it said, “glimmer is a currency, you can buy about anything with it. I meant a space jumpship, not a boat. And Sparrow is a fast vehicle favoured by Guardians.”

“Do I get one?”

“If you have enough glimmer, you can have as many as you want.”

She laughed at that.

“Why would I need more than one?”

“I heard from other Ghosts their Guardians like to boast with them, especially between classes.”

She tilted her head. “You mentioned those before. Guardians from different classes don’t like each other?”

The Ghost waited with its answer until she jumped to the other side of the fallen bridge. A river roared few meters under it, the current strong after the yesterday’s rain. If the Guardian fell, it would take the Ghost a while to get her out alive. When she safely made it, it said:”I think it’s more of a friendly banter. A competition which class is better.” _But all of them are equally silly about it_ , it thought to itself.

The Exo picked up a few pebbles. She threw them ahead, then picked some more.

“How do I know which class I belong to?”

She tossed one of the pebbles into air. As it was falling she hit it with another one.

“You’re a Hunter, trust me on this one,” the Ghost said.

“How can you be so sure?”

Now she was attempting to juggle those pebbles.

“If you are any other class, I will eat my shell.”

She hissed an “ouch” when one of the pebbles hit her head.

“Can you do that?”

“Well, no. But you are a Hunter one hundred percent. So I don’t need to figure that out.”

“And I’m asking; how do you know?”

It stared at her, shell twirling. She was stacking and balancing the pebbles on her hand. After the fifteenth, the pillar of pebbles collapsed. She started over.

“I have a feeling,” it finally replied.

Then it urged her to follow it and within few moments she did. It led her from the broken road back into the woods. Behind them stayed a pile of pebbles with a single yellow flower on top.


	3. Light

Following days were a breath of fresh air for the Ghost. The endless searching, never stopping scanning for the right person made it more mentally exhausted than it had realized. It had been lonely as well; unable to contact other Ghosts due to its injury. How long had it been? Fifty, eighty years since it got shot? It twisted its shell to hide the crack on its core. It hoped there wasn’t any permanent damage.

They’d covered quite a distance, yet they weren’t any closer to the City. So far they hadn’t encountered any hostiles. It was glad. She hadn’t figured out how to use her Light yet. It prayed to the Traveller she’d find out how sooner than later. It wished it wasn’t so useless; unable to provide her with any armour or weapons. It hoped it could get repaired. She didn’t deserve a useless Ghost.

“Ghost?” her voice pulled it out of its dark thoughts. She was looking at him with those bright amber eyes. She looked worried. _Right, she asked me where to go now._

“This way,” it said as it floated upwards.

“I don’t think I can climb such steep slope.”

”It’s not that steep. You can do it!”

She was unconvinced. With crossed arms she called: ”I will slip and fall and break something.”

“I won’t let anything happen to you. You’ll be okay.”

She stared at me for a moment before giving in. With a small run-up she jumped. She grabbed the rock and pulled herself to its surface.

“You’re doing great, just a bit higher!”

She surprised herself how well she could climb the rocky wall. She ascended it like she was born to do it.

_Foot, now the other, heh, that's funnily shaped rock ,no distracting yourself, you know what Ghost told you about that, grab the funny rock, pull yourself higher..._

Her Ghost chanted encouragement after encouragement. Its Guardian was so talented and she hadn’t been put through any training yet! What else would she be able to do after?

"You're almost here!"

As she went to pull herself up, the ground beneath her moved. Panicking, she tried to grab onto more stable surface, but it was too late. She screamed.

"Guardian!"

The Ghost only helplessly watched as its Guardian succumbed to certain death.

The Exo woman was terrified. This was why she didn't want to climb that stupid rock at first place! Desperately, she reached to grab anything with her hands but to no avail. She didn't want to fall! It was then when she felt it. A pressure, a foothold. It was way too small to hold her but maybe she could bounce off of it. And so she did.

She body slammed into the rocky wall. But yet again she couldn't find a firm hold. She slipped and slipped, her palms torn from the stress. And finally she hit the ground.

The Ghost rushed after his fallen charge. It knew she'd be fine in moments. But it couldn't help itself from worrying.

She laid there, unmoving, her left leg twisted weirdly in the knee. It scanned her. She survived; she was just unconscious. So it concentrated on the Light deep in its core. It used that power gifted to it to heal her.

She shot up, jumping on her feet, only to succumb back onto ground with a sharp cry.

"Easy there! I'm not done healing you," it told her.

"You said I'd be fine."

"You are, almost."

The Ghost carefully mended all her injuries. It was the least it could do. She flexed her limbs once it was done.

"Do I have to climb it again?" she asked.

"It's the only way. Unless you want to walk all the way back to the river."

She eyed the hillside with distrust.

"I don't think I can."

The Ghost floated closer to her, slightly nudging her.

"You can if you use the Light again."

"But I don't know ho-... Wait," she stopped mid-sentence. She gestured at herself, looking at her Ghost for confirmation, "I used my Light?"

"Yes, you did. You didn't nail the landing but you definitely soften your fall."

The Ghost hovered over her damaged leg. It concentrated the beam of Light over the injury. She watched in amazement at how quickly it got mended. Besides uncomfortable itching and pulling, she didn't feel a thing.

"Will I be able to do it again?"

"Of course," not it moved to heal her torn palms, "you can start by climbing the slope again."

She glanced at the mentioned hillside. It looked the same as before, but it seemed less menacing now. She looked at her now healed hands.

"If I fall again," she looked up at her companion, "will you help me?"

"Always."

Indescribable feeling warmed the Guardian. She felt, with him by her side, she could do anything.

The Ghost felt proud seeing its Guardian stand up and face her fears. Even though it took centuries to find her, it thanked its Creator for getting to call her its own.


End file.
